Your cute and furry companions have an impact on the planet. Yet, their exact role in climate change remains to be determined. We've set out on a journey to research what has been reported on dogs and cats' precise carbon pawprint. 

Dog Pawprint

To start, we went back to 2017, where a group of UCLA researchers assessed how our furry friends impact our environment. The results were stunning. Dogs and cats are responsible for 25% of the greenhouse gas emissions caused by animal agriculture. Specifically, cat and dog food production contributes a whopping 64 million tonnes of carbon dioxide yearly?. Furthermore, the environmental impact is associated with the size of the animal. Presumably, bigger dogs have a bigger contribution to greenhouse emissions. 

Arizona State University has calculated that the Jack Russell terrier emits 600 kg of carbon dioxide per year, the Labrador 1.6 tonnes, and the St. Bernard 2.3 tonnes. However, these numbers are underestimated because they do not account for emissions produced during transportation and processing of pet food. However, we can make a rough estimate that small dogs leave a pawprint of 1 tonne, medium dogs 2 tonnes, and larger dogs 3 tonnes. That's almost a fourth of the average human footprint of 12 tonnes.

Cat Pawprint

These fuzzy felines also have an impact on the environment. Unfortunately, there is much less data for the cat's carbon impact. Rough estimates assume that a single cat has a carbon pawprint of 2 tonnes. Even though these animals are much smaller, their diet often contains more meat. Cats are carnivores, and while carnivores can balance the food-chain, a surplus can result in enormous damage. 

Drawing a Conclusion

Last year, across U.S. or world households, there were 471 Million Dogs and 373 Million Cats. Given our companions' carbon pawprints, these pets contribute approximately 1.7 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide to our environment yearly.

Gregory S. Okin from UCLA adds, "This analysis does not mean that dog and cat ownership should be curtailed for environmental reasons, but neither should we view it as an unalloyed good." He adds, "As pet ownership increases in some developing countries, especially China, and trends continue in pet food toward higher content and quality of meat, pet ownership will compound the environmental impacts of human dietary choices." 

Cats and dogs can be beneficial in many ways - from improving your emotional to physical health. They can even help you reduce some emissions such as driving or flying. However, like all things, our furry friends have a dark side. If you're concerned about meat intake, consider feeding your dogs a more vegetarian and homemade diet with limited processing. Because dogs are omnivores and cats are carnivores, it would be unhealthy to remove meat from their diet entirely. To reduce their impact, follow the three steps of: 

Reducing Pawprints

1. Conscious Feeding: 60% of cats tip the scales into obesity and slightly more than 56% of dogs. Our pets are getting fat - and it's not good for them. Ensure that you regularly walk or play with these animals to help them remain physically active. Plus, don't overfeed them! 

2. Low-Footprint Food: Sometimes, feeding your dogs and cats that more expensive and higher quality food is not worth it. These foods have more carbon-intensive ingredients and are transported great distances. Dogs and cats will happily chow down on meat by-products, such as marrow, kidneys, and spleen. Even better, make them homemade food! 

3. Eco-Friendly Pets: Another alternative is to gain the same emotional benefits that dogs and cats provide you by choosing inaptly vegetarian animals. These can be birds, hamsters, and even fish. With no meat consumption, they have a drastically smaller footprint. 

Let's ensure that our companions aren't following our dangerous attitudes towards nature. With pet ownership nearly doubling each decade, we should be conscious of their carbon pawprint and make informed choices about their diet.

Hey there! Below you can find the sources we used to generate these estimates. If you disagree with the facts in this article, please contact us so we can ensure we have the most up to date information.

Our Sources

Okin, Gregory. “Environmental Impacts of Food Consumption by Dogs and Cats.” PLOS ONE, 2 Aug. 2017, https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0181301.

Walden, Liz. “Worldwide Pet Ownership Statistics | Most Common Pets Around the World - PetSecure.” PetSecure, 13 May 2015, https://www.petsecure.com.au/pet-care/a-guide-to-worldwide-pet-ownership/.

“2017 — Association for Pet Obesity Prevention.” Association for Pet Obesity Prevention, 7 July 2020, https://petobesityprevention.org/2017.

“Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator | US EPA.” US EPA, 28 Aug. 2015, https://www.epa.gov/energy/greenhouse-gas-equivalencies-calculator.

Jenks, Susan. “Our Fat Pets.” NYTimes, 2 Aug. 2018, https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/02/well/fat-pets-dog-cat-health.html.

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